


Edo Tensei and It’s Equivalents

by Shadow_Bringer



Category: Naruto, 魔道祖师 - 墨香铜臭 | Módào Zǔshī - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù
Genre: Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Crossover, Depression, Dimensional Travel, Other, comedy? Look I tried, idiot geniuses being idiots and geniuses, no beta we die like suicidal martial-arts based magic users, suicidal thoughts but he’s already dead so not quite
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-09
Updated: 2021-02-18
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:54:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,826
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27049789
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shadow_Bringer/pseuds/Shadow_Bringer
Summary: When Tobirama was young, he tried to create a reanimation jutsu that he would later name Edo Tensei. However, his first attempts were less than successful. Instead of summoning the dead, he summoned someone who’s fate was to become a necromancer— a cultivator from a different realm by the name of Wei Wuxian.
Comments: 40
Kudos: 86





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [AiHuiyuan](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AiHuiyuan/gifts).



**1.**

The first time Senju Tobirama summoned Wei Wuxian, he’s seven. He’s seven and angry. He’s angry at Butsuma for giving Itama such a dangerous first mission when the boy was more healer than warrior. He’s angry at the Uchiha for seeing Itama as a threat, present or future, for _toying with_ and _killing_ his brother. He’s angry at himself for leaving Itama when he _knew_ it wouldn’t, _couldn’t_ , end well so close to the border. Under that, he’s just... desolate. Desperate and smart enough that his desperation makes him dangerous. All he wanted was to see his brothers again. To see Itama and Kawarama, to hold them in his arms. To apologize, beg for a forgiveness he doesn’t deserve, because it’s his fault his younger brother died.

(He never would have been content with just a moment longer; always would have stretched the boundaries until it killed him.)

He uses blood because anything that needs this much power will need a conduit that can survive it. Ink would just burn up when the chakra floods it. Beyond that, blood is naturally infused with chakra and he needs any edge up he can get. He clears off his floor and paints it there because the scrolls he has access to simply aren’t large enough. He checks and double checks and triple checks through his haze of blood loss because he can’t make a mistake or this will all be for nothing. He’s sure that everything’s perfect and that it’ll work, it _has_ to work. He presses his fingertips into the nearest seal line and takes a deep breath to steady himself when his vision swims, spots black.

Then, without a second more of hesitation, he pours every scrap of chakra he has built up into his seal. The chakra crackles blue, the bloody lines glow red, and his room is painted an ominous purple. Tobirama’s eyes burn with the brightness of it. There’s a ripple, the air twists, and Tobirama can only hope the privacy seals he plastered to the walls will hold because this is so much more powerful than he expected, drawing on something that’s not him because he only has so much chakra (not enough). His vision, or what remains of it, is graying out in a mix of blood loss and chakra exhaustion but he holds on because if he fails when he’s so close, he’ll-

He’ll-

The only way for him to describe what happens next is that the air tears though at this point, his sight is less than trustworthy. There’s a sound, like a shout under water, and he doesn’t know if that’s from the blood rushing in his ears and his dizziness or it it’s because whoever made the sound is still on the other side of the tear, the portal. A black blur hits hit floor, he can’t hear the thud he knows must have been made of the body against the wood, as his seal folds in on itself, collapsing. He has long since dropped below safe amounts of chakra, running on dregs if anything, lungs frozen. He tries to stand, wants to rush to the side of whoever he just summoned, has to be sure it’s Kawarama or Itama. He barely manages to shift his weight before his sight leaves him completely and he’s no more.

When he wakes up again, he’s stiff, sore, and can hardly move. He feels awful, although better than he expected after using up so much blood and chakra. For a moment he’s desolate, sure he had failed even though he has no idea what might have gone wrong. Then the memory of what he had fallen unconscious _to_ returns and is gripped by energy so manic and intense that he manages to struggle his way onto his elbows. He needs to see who he summoned, needs to- to- An unfamiliar face comes into view, concern clear on their face, a hand pressing him back down onto his bed. He failed, then.

He _failed_.

“Hen haoxing ni hai huozhe,” the person says, nonsensically. The words are a sidestep away from being familiar, strange in their pronunciation and stranger in their structure. Tobirama frowns. This can’t be good. He’s tired but it shouldn’t be so much so that spoken language sounds like gibberish. He takes another look at the person- man -he summoned. The man isn’t that old, maybe fourteen, fifteen, and doesn’t have a clan symbol anywhere that he can see. There’s is a bell hanging from the man’s waist but he’s never heard of a clan using something like that as identification. His clothes clearly aren’t shinobi garb, either. A civilian, perhaps? Something about that strikes him as wrong, though.

”Ninhao?” The man sounds halfway impatient, halfway concerned and Tobirama still can’t understand a word coming from his mouth. He should... probably find a kunai. His lack of ability to move is making that damn hard, unfortunately.

”I can’t understand you,” he manages around his dry throat and pounding head. The words scrape and ache, almost burn. The man pauses, brow furrowing, staring at Tobirama like it’s _him_ that’s out of place and not this foreign man with his equally foreign language. The man man hums thoughtfully and then points at himself.

“Wo jiao Wei Wuxian,” he says firmly. Then, a bit slower and more pronounce, “Wei Wuxian.” Tobirama catches on immediately.

”I’m Senju Tobirama,” he introduces. Like Wuxian had, he repeats his name, slow and precise. Wuxian grins so widely and brightly that Tobirama is sure it must be painful. It reminds him, a bit, of Hashirama, though there’s a mischievous edge to Wuxian’s grin that would be more on brand with Kawarama than Hashirama. The man chatters in that strange language of his, using his hands to make gestures that don’t help Tobirama translate the man _at all_. Finally having enough, head swimming, he interrupts.

” _Wuxian_.” Wuxian gives him a sheepish look, letting his hands drop. Then, seemingly realizing something, the man pauses, staring at him strangely. Wuxian smiles after a moment and suddenly Tobirama is very worried.

”Tobi-er,” he chirps. Tobirama makes a face at the nickname before he can stop himself.

”Tobirama,” he corrects.

”Tobi-er,” Wuxian sing-songs persistently, stubbornly. Tobirama wants to argue more but his sight is going again and he knows he’s used up what little energy he managed to accumulate during his sleep. Wuxian seems to notice this as well and says something else, voice soothing. He faintly feels fingers press into the underside of his wrist and keeps from jerking away only because of the exhaustion that had risen in him like a vengeful spirit. This time, Tobirama goes to sleep to warm energy circulating his body and Wuxian smile, soft and sweet.

When he wakes up once more, it’s to Hashirama, panicked and scared. Wuxian is gone, not a single trace of him left, and the only thing that proves the man existed at all are the minor changes made to the blood seal and the trace amounts of warmth still circulating through his meridians that Tobirama only barely catches. He holds tight to Hashirama, endures Butsuma’s punishment, and resolves himself to protecting what family he has left. He’s not sure Hashirama could go one, at this point, if Tobirama left him as well.

Later, much later, he finds the note Wuxian left him. He can understand the characters written on it, the simple ‘goodbye’ that rests on the paper, above a small but incredibly well-drawn picture of Wuxian piling cats onto him. He scoffs at it and makes a mental note to destroy it later, tucking it alway so no one else will see it until then. _(It never gets destroyed, ending up tucked away in the place he would come to hide his plans for a village he only made to support his brother and the impossible dream of two naive children.)_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the Chinese- I’m still learning so there’s a 50/50 chance it actually makes sense but heres what I hope it says:
> 
> “Hen haoxing ni hai huozhe” — Good to know you’re still alive  
> “Ninhao” — Hello  
> “Wo jiao Wei Wuxian” — My name is/I’m called Wei Wuxian
> 
> I am so sorry if I butchered the Chinese. I don’t know enough of the language yet to translate on my own so I did need to rely a bit on google (a horrible thing, I know). They were smaller phrases so they shouldn’t have turned out to be amazingly bad but you never know. They also don’t have accents, I know, but that’s because my phone sucks and the accents I need apparently don’t exist.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So. 3 years = 3 Months, 3 Weeks, 5 days, and 57.6 minutes. If you would like an explanation, please refer to End Notes.

**2.**

The second time Wei Wuxian is summoned, only a little less than four months have passed. Being summoned at all is weird but being summoned twice? In one year, no less? That’s just down right concerning. The summoning itself isn’t painful or anything, just sudden. He was sparring with Jiang Cheng when it happened, this time, and that probably makes his reaction to the sudden displacement worse than it otherwise would have- he hoped he didn’t worry Jiang Cheng _too_ much. His cute little shidi is always so violent when worried.

The place Wei Wuxian lands in isn’t familiar, at first, so he feels no one can blame him when he land ready for a fight, Suibian out in front of him protectively. The room is littered with scrolls and paper, weapons and armor on a stand in the corner. Below him is a strange talisman that niggles at something in his memories. What really gets him, though, is the young albino kid in front of him, holding a strange kind of knife. The boy exhales sharply and Wei Wuxian jolts, sliding his sword away as he lets himself relax. Why is the boy so familiar? It hits him after a moment, though the idea feels preposterous.

”Tobi-er?” He asks, hesitant and uncertain. You can’t blame him. Even though the last time he saw the boy was just shy of four months ago, Senju Tobirama seems to have aged several years. That, combined with the low light level of the room, is why he had had so much trouble putting a name to the face.

”...Wuxian,” Senju Tobirama says quietly. Wei Wuxian’s lips twitch a bit- Senju Tobirama had called him so informally first and even more shamelessly than Wei Wuxian. No one will ever believe him that he’s met someone more shameless than himself (there’s a chance it’s another difference between their homelands, like how Senju Tobirama speaks a different language, but the idea is just so _strange_ ). Whatever, it doesn’t really matter anyway. Wei Wuxian groans dramatically and bypasses his little baby friend entirely, flinging himself bodily onto the bed beside them. They’re going to have to piecemeal their languages together if they want to communicate at all. He lets himself sink into the comfort of the bed for a moment, lets himself ignore Senju Tobirama’s unnatural suspicion and battle-readiness, before sitting back up with a sigh. He shifts on his claimed throne it look at Senju Tobirama. Starting with introductions should be easy enough for the boy to grasp.

”My name is Wei Wuxian,” he says, pointing at himself. Then he points at Senju Tobirama. “Your name is Tobi-er.” He admits to using the nickname specifically to see the boy twitch in irritation.

”My name is _Tobirama_ ,” Senju Tobirama hisses back. The words are accented but Senju Tobirama did admirably for his first try, not even stumbling. Wei Wuxian grins and claps for the boy. He gets a smoldering glare in answer. Jiang Cheng would get along fabulously with Senju Tobirama; it would be horrifying. Wei Wuxian motions for Senju Tobirama to go, hoping the boy will understand and use his own language so Wei Wuxian can copy the words. When Senju Tobirama just stares blankly, he‘s disappointed but isn’t terribly surprised.

”My name is...” Wei Wuxian tries again, trailing off pointed, motioning again at Senju Tobirama.

”My name is?” Senju Tobirama repeats, confused, but Wei Wuxian is shaking his head before the boy is even through the words. What could make this easier to understand...? Switching gears, Wei Wuxian pats the bed he’s sitting on,

”Bed,” he says slowly and turns an expectant look on his small friend.

”Bed,” Senju Tobirama repeats. Wei Wuxian nods, giving a thumbs up. When he’s sure Senju Tobirama is done testing the new word, he points at Senju Tobirama and then at the bed. He could almost cry in relief when he sees the realization dawn on Senju Tobirama.

”Beddo,” Senju Tobirama says, pointing at the bed as Wei Wuxian had. He grins victoriously and repeats the word. He points at the talisman on the floor, next.

”Talisman,” he says and can’t help from grumbling, “sort of.”

”Talisman,” Senju Tobirama repeats. Then, “inkan.” They continúe in this pattern for a while, Wei Wuxian switching from items in the room to harder things like adjectives and what not so he can make actual sentences, even if they are rather simple. Eventually, they have enough to work with that Senju Tobirama can ask, through a mixture of charades and the two languages, what Wei Wuxian had done to teleport himself back home the first time around. He’s a bit ashamed to say that he lets himself get swept up in his excitement, explaining in tangents and swift charades that probably don’t actually help Senju Tobirama at all, going off the numerous uncomprehending looks he receives. Finally, Wei Wuxian gives up with an aggravated sigh and unhappy pout.

”Food?” He tests. If he’s going to be here for any length of time, he needs sustenance, the spicier the better. Has he learned that word yet? He searches for it for a moment. “...Shokumotsu?” He’s... decently sure that’s right, at any rate. Senju Tobirama hesitates, glancing at the door to the room. When red eyes return to him, Wei Wuxian makes his most pitiful face. He can almost see Senju Tobirama crumble.

”Bakkin,” Senju Tobirama snaps. The sounds promising, even if Wei Wuxian doesn’t actually know what the boy said. “Koko de machi nasai.” Senju Tobirama points warningly at Wei Wuxian and he offers his most innocent look. Senju Tobirama does not look convinced. With only a moment more of hesitation, Senju Tobirama disappears out the door, carefully closing it behind him. Wei Wuxian waits, staring at the door, until he’s sure Senju Tobirama is gone. Bored and inconsolably curious, Wei Wuxian launches to his feet and begins poking around the room. He ignores the papers and scrolls after a short glance finds them largely untranslatable and instead just tries to find things interesting to test.

There’s nothing interesting in Senju Tobirama’s desk drawers or anything but there _are_ weapons absolutely everywhere. Not even just in and around the sword stand- there’s one in almost every desk drawer, some laying around on the desk and shelves, even one under the bed’s pillow! Most are some strange knives, like the one Senju Tobirama had had in hand when Wei Wuxian originally arrived, or lightweight, throwable needles. Then there’s the armor, of course, on its stand. All in all, it’s rather concerning. Just what kind of place is he being summoned to? The door slams open and Wei Wuxian jumps, whipping around to brandish a makeshift weapon. Admittedly, he probably should have grabbed the knife instead of the scroll but whatever, he has Suibian if he needs a weapon.

”Tobi!“ The intruder cheers, cutting off rather abruptly to stare owlishly at Wei Wuxian. He stares back, just as wide-eyed. The boy, only one or two years younger than Wei Wuxian and with darker skin and hair a shade of brown he’s never seen, drops his gaze to the scroll Wei Wuxian has brandished. Suddenly, he realizes that it probably looks like he’s stealing the damn thing.

“Wait-“ Wei Wuxian says, panicking. The boy opens his mouth, taking in a big breath, and a white blur slams into him, bringing the pair of them further into the room. Senju Tobirama is sitting on the boy’s chest, one hand clapped over the boy’s mouth, the other holding a box, and a dark glare in his eyes.

”Anija,” Senju Tobirama hisses out through clenched teeth. “Ki ni shinai yō ni itta.” The trapped kid splutters out unintelligible words around Senju Tobirama’s hand.

”Um,” Wei Wuxian interrupts, blinking when both boys snap around to stare at him. “...Kon'nichiwa?"

"Wuxian, kono baka," Senju Tobirama says. It sounds like an insult. Wei Wuxian makes an appropriately aggrieved face. Absolutely none of this situation is his fault! Senju Tobirama was the one to summon him, that boy was the one to break in without knocking or anything, Wei Wuxian is just going with the flow! Senju Tobirama throws the box in his hand at Wei Wuxian. He manages to catch the unwieldy projectile, blinking at the younger in confusion. Senju Tobirama makes furious motions and words at both Wei Wuxian and the other boy that he takes to mean 'stop trying to kill each other and don't move'. The door is closed and locked. Wei Wuxian exchanges a knowing, horrified glance with the formerly-pinned boy.

He debates how likely it is they're going to get out of this alive. If Senju Tobirama is anything like Jiang Cheng, which he is, they have a -52% chance of survival.

"Kare no namae wa Wei Wuxian," Senju Tobirama says, pointing at Wei Wuxian. He points at the boy on the floor, next. "Your name is Senju Hashirama."

"His," Wei Wuxian corrects. The albino glares at him. If looks could kill, he would have just been frozen, burned alive, and electrified all in one go. When Senju Tobirama is an adult, his glares will be almost as scary as Jiang Cheng's! Senju Tobirama and Senju Hashirama (related- brothers?) have a rapid exchange in their native language. Wei Wuxian, deciding that it's not worth the headache trying (and failing) to follow along will undoubtedly cause, turns his attention to the box in his hands. He opens it, grinning when he realizes it's filled with rolls. He glances up at Senju Tobirama to give his thanks but, finding the boy still deeply embroiled in his conversation, decides to forgo the thanks and just dig in.

Senju Hashirama makes an affronted noise he skillfully ignores.

The rolls are not, unfortunately, spicy. He hadn't really expected them to be but he can hope, right? Maybe he can convince Jiang Yanli to let him make some curry when he gets home. Oh, maybe he can get Jiang Cheng to join them and it could just be, like, a family bonding thing or something! He thinks that would be fun if he can convince both of them that it's a good idea. Which it is! All of Wei Wuxian's ideas are good. Well. Most of them are, anyway.

"Kon'nichiwa," Senju Hashirama chirps, apparently deciding that testing Senju Tobirama's clearly limited patience isn't worth the risk. Then the boy is off babbling in that other language. Wei Wuxian makes agreeable hums around his food, nodding along like he has any clue about what's going on. Senju Tobirama is looking between, exasperation mounting in his expression. He looks a bit like he regrets stopping Senju Hashirama and Wei Wuxian from killing each other.

Oooh no, Senju Hashirama is giving him a very expectant look. Did the boy ask a question? Wei Wuxian gives a thumbs up. Senju Tobirama’s eye twitches. Senju Hashirama looks very confused and concerned. Shit.

”I can’t actually understand you,” Wei Wuxian enlightens, uselessly. Senju Hashirama’s face goes through a lot of emotions very quickly. It almost looks sorta like he’s having a stroke or something. Then Senju Hashirama turns suddenly on Senju Tobirama, attaching to the younger boy like an octopus with a wail. Wei Wuxian snickers at his small friend’s absolutely done expression.

Maybe he should explore while Senju Tobirama deals with his brother? That sounds fun.

Neither brother notices him as he slips out. Senju Tobirama is too busy trying to survive while Senju Hashirama is too busy trying to smother his brother. Wei Wuxian assumes it's lovingly smothering because he doesn't really want to have to save his friend. He has things to do, you know? Those things being causing chaos, of course. He wonders if he can flirt even if he doesn't know the language of these parts. It'll be interesting to know how strong his flirting skills are.

* * *

"Where did your friend go?" Hashirama asks innocently. Tobirama freezes and then whips around to where he had last seen Wuxian. The man is gone because of course he is.

"Oh shit," he says. There's an explosion of chakra. Tobirama exchanges a wide-eyed look with Hashirama. _That_ had been Touka- they could recognize her signature anywhere. They take off, following the sounds of destruction, because what else are they to do?

Of course, neither of them expect to find Wuxian and Touka working together (or at least appearing to) to... cause damage? Tobirama's not sure what their end goal might be. Tobirama screeches when Wuxian swings by and he finds himself unexpectedly taller, perched on the man's shoulders.

"Where'd you find this guy?!" Touka yells. "I love him!" Wuxian devolves into some concerning cackles.

"Tobirama- Touka- What is going on here?!" Tobirama twists on Wuxian's shoulders to find Butsuma next to Hashirama (who is currently struggling not to burst out laughing), looking for the world like he doesn't really want to know what's going on here. To be fair, Tobirama still has no idea what's going on and neither Wuxian nor Touka, both still cackling and backlit by fire, seem like they're going to explain anytime soon.

"Who is that man?!" Ah, that's a significantly easier question to answer.

"Tobirama's friend!" Hashirama chirps at the same time Tobirama says, "I accidentally summoned him."

"...Right," Butsuma says flatly.

* * *

Honestly, being scolded by some old guy in a language he can't even understand wasn't in his plans for the day but none of what's been going on was really in his plans so whatever. He's used to it, though, and it's not like any words directed at him, even if he _could_ understand them, could match the sharp sting of Zidian. Clearly, the words are affecting his new friends much more, though. The girl, maybe a bit older than him, with whom he had caused glorious chaos, has the sort of expression that Jiang Cheng always had on the rare occasion that he gained Lan Qiren's ire. The face that means she's only accepting this scolding because she has to, not that she agrees with it. Senju Tobirama is keeping his eyes firmly on the floor but his hands are clenched where they rest on his legs. Senju Hashirama keeps sneaking concerned looks towards Senju Tobirama. None of them seem to be taking the scolding particularly well- it makes him feel angry on their behalf. Suibian thrums at his hip, a silent encouragement. He stands, bringing the old man’s attention abruptly back to himself. The man snaps something and he can’t help but snap back.

”Fuck you,” he hisses before turning and scooping Senju Tobirama up to settle on his hip. The boy makes an affronted noise that he ignores, too focused on not letting his spiritual energy bubble over. The old man says something that he resolutely ignores just as he had ignored Senju Tobirama but then the man takes a step forward that he’s not stupid enough to pass over as a threat. His free hand goes immediately to Suibian’s hilt as he glares furiously at the man. No matter who he is, no one gets to treat Wei Wuxian’s friends like that. Senju Tobirama’s hands grab at his arms.

”No,” the boy says firmly though his voice tremors slightly. Wei Wuxian's eyes flick to Senju Hashirama and then the girl, taking in their tense posture, the way they clearly don't know what they're supposed to do. Wei Wuxian scoffs, stalking angrily from the room. He can hear an argument start as he leaves but doesn't turn back, tightening his grip protectively on Senju Tobirama. The boy in his arms doesn't say anything, apparently understanding that any attempt to calm him down would be futile, but just watches him with sharp, intelligent eyes.

When Wei Wuxian hunts down Senju Tobirama’s room once more, with some unobtrusive directions from the boy himself, he finds it bereft of the one thing he needs: the seal. All traces of it have been cleaned up, the only thing remaining the faint scent of blood. He drops his small friend on the bed and paces around the area the talisman had been. He doesn’t remember enough of the talisman to completely recreate it and he can’t speak easily enough with Senju Tobirama to have the boy fill in the blanks. Fuck.

It takes them a month and a half.

An entire month and a half for Senju Tobirama to collect what he needs and to repaint the seal, interspersed with times where his young friend fights in what is apparently a whole ass war. Senju Tobirama is _not_ old enough to fight in a _war_.

He is absolutely _done_ with this universe.

”Homu,” he grouses, the word strange on his tongue. “Watashi iku homu.” That wasn’t quite right, was it? Whatever, Senju Tobirama clearly understands, even if he seems a bit surprised. Honestly, Wei Wuxian isn’t _dumb_ , no matter what Jiang Cheng claims.

”Hai,” Senju Tobirama says, sounding agreeable. The boy offers him the ink that smell weirdly like blood. Wei Wuxian takes it, making a face. He turns his attention to the seal. He has forgotten the exact changes he had made the first time around but it shouldn’t be terribly hard to figure out a way to make it work again. He moves steadily around the talisman, Senju Tobirama’s eyes sharp on him, and makes small changes. Reversing a talisman, even such a strange one, is more simple that creating new one. Wei Wuxian shifts the flow of energy in the seal, leading it around to the area he wants it to pool in. He makes adjustments to remove the secondary energy source that isn’t spiritual or resentful but not terribly far from either. He tries not to mess with the main components at all— he doesn’t quite know how the thing works —and so adds a small amendment to the edges to take him home instead of bringing him here. Around that time, something seems to click with Senju Tobirama and the boy takes a step back to see the whole talisman more clearly.

He wonders if Senju Tobirama knows what he’s done, if the boy has figured it out. As the creator, the boy honestly probably knows how Wei Wuxian’s additions have changed the talisman better than Wei Wuxian does. When he’s finished, Wei Wuxian stands, grinning proudly.

”Tobi-er,” he calls because Senju Tobirama looks more caught up in whatever the adjusted talisman has revealed to him than Wei Wuxian. Wei Wuxian tosses the brush at the boy’s forehead with precision that has gotten him through many-a pranks and Senju Tobirama looks up just in time to fumble through a catch, clearly taken off guard. Wei Wuxian snickers and tosses the inkwell. The catch is much smoother this time around and Senju Tobirama gives him a dirty look. Hey, he wants to say, at least he threw the _brush_ first.

”Bye,” Wei Wuxian says cheerfully as he drops back down to press his fingertips against the edge of the talisman, spiritual energy rushing to activate it. “Sayōnara!” The repetition is likely unnecessary but he wanted to make sure that Senju Tobirama caught his goodbye. He’s swallowed up by his own spiritual energy a moment later, reappearing right where he had been when he had been summoned. He swears the entire sect is there, only a few actually practicing while most seem to be doing some sort of investigation.

”Um... hi?” He offers to the stares of the people he’s grown up with. Jiang Cheng lunges forward and he prepares for a punch but that leaves him so utterly unprepared when his adopted little brother drags him into a lung-crushing hug. Wei Wuxian’s arms hover out by his sides, unsure of what he should do with them.

”Jiang-“

”Shut up,” Jiang Cheng interrupts with a hiss, voice tight. A breath shutters out of Wei Wuxian. _Oh_ , he thinks. He lets his arms loop around his shidi, lets his hands bury into the fabric of his brother’s robes. _Oh_ , he thinks again, finally seeing the concern and relief on the faces of the other disciples, in Jiang Yanli and Jiang Fengmian’s faces.

_(In another world, a ten year old child soldier breaths the same word, meridians warm with the spiritual energy that had bubbled over and been left behind. Oh, he thinks and he tightens his hand around the brush and inkwell in his hands, his goal to bring his brothers, killed far, far too young, back no longer seems like a dream out of his reach. He realizes this all and ignores the part of him that craves to summon Wei Wuxian again, to experiment; whatever Wei Wuxian is, whomever he is, he is not something that should be able to exist in a world balanced so carefully between the spiritual and physical.)_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realized halfway through that I should probably write the Japanese not the Chinese so tell me if there’s any remaining Chinese. I don’t know any Japanese at all so... tell me if I was too bad, okay?
> 
> Translations:
> 
> “Beddo” — bed  
> “Inkan” — seal  
> “Shokumotsu” — food  
> “Bakkin” — fine  
> “Koko de machi nasai” — stay here  
> “Anija” — older brother  
> “Ki ni shinai yō ni itta” — I told you not to bother me  
> “Kon'nichiwa” — hello  
> "Wuxian, kono baka" — Wuxian, you idiot  
> "Kare no namae wa..." — His name is...  
> "Kon'nichiwa" — Hello  
> “Homu” — home  
> “Watashi iku homu” — I go home  
> “Hai” — okay  
> "Sayōnara" — bye  
> If I have to suffer the math, so do you 😌
> 
> **If 13 years pass in mdzs and 120 years pass in nart, how many years pass in nart if 1 year pass in mdzs?**
> 
> 1/13 = x/120  
> 13x = 120  
> X = 9.23
> 
> **1 year in mdzs is roughly 9 years and 2 months in nart**
> 
> 1/9.16 = x/3  
> 3 = 9.16x  
> 0.327 = x
> 
> 1/12 = 0.327/x  
> X = 3.930
> 
> 1/4 = 0.930/x  
> X = 3.72
> 
> 1/7 = 0.72/x  
> X = 5.04
> 
> 1/24 = 0.04/x  
> X = 0.96
> 
> 1/60 = 0.96/x  
> X = 57.6
> 
> **3 years in Nart is 3 Months, 3 Weeks, 5 days, and 57.6 minutes in mdzs**


	3. Chapter 3

**3.**

This time, Wuxian won't be summoned by a faulty seal- he's long since learned which parts of the seal latch onto his otherworldly friend. No, he's summoning Wuxian on purpose this time because it's the only way to get someone he trusts to his location in time. Tobirama stumbles a few more paces from the site of his fight, limbs numb from blood loss, and trips over something that might be a root or a plant or a bloody limb. His sight is blurring, graying out at the edges. It's been a long time since he was last in such bad a condition; probably not since that first time he summoned Wuxian. He knows he won't be able to make it back like this and like hell will anyone friendly manage to stumble across him. His luck's not that good. So, instead of trying and getting himself killed, he fumbles a summoning scroll from his belt with stiff, cold fingers. He nearly drops it twice, can barely manage to unroll the damn thing.

He's never let anyone touch the scroll, hasn't even when it earns him Butsuma's ire or Hashirama's outs or Touka's dangerous curiosity or the elder's analytical glares. He thinks he's grateful for his possessiveness, now. He can't really tell. Everything seems... so far away. Distant and foggy. He doesn't bother biting or cutting his thumb- there's plenty of fresh blood already on him. He pours as much chakra as he can (not very much; not enough) into the seal and hopes it will be enough because if it isn't...

If it isn't, and Wuxian doesn't come, Tobirama fears he will die here, in this bloody clearing. Hashirama isn't nearly as fragile as he once was but he still doesn't want to put his anija through the loss of his last remaining brother. It would tear Hashirama apart, just like it would tear Tobirama apart if he lost Hashirama.

He blacks out before he knows the results of his last desperate measure.

He's not sure how long he spends drifting between unconsciousness and the verge of consciousness but the moment he's aware enough to realize that he's still alive, he knows his summoning worked. Well, either that or he's officially the luckiest person in the Elemental Nations. From then, it takes simultaneously too much and too little time for his chakra and blood to recuperate enough for him to force himself into full consciousness. It takes a few blinks for his eyesight to actually work, his first look being blurry and dark. The ceiling of a cave is the first thing he sees when he comes to, golden with sunlight and the light of fire as shadows dance in the corners of his vision. There's the sound of cloth on cloth and Tobirama immediately matches it to the unwieldy clothing of his friend (can they be counted as friends after so few meetings?) wears. He lets his head lull to the side lazily and Wuxian finally comes into view. Wuxian is watching him intently and he meets the familiar silver eyes fearlessly. While the other smiles, Tobirama can see the edges of rage lurking in the corners of his lips, the light of his eyes. Tobirama frowns as he pushes himself into a sitting position, ignoring the way his vision wavers dangerously. There's a darkness around Wuxian that had been missing before, just this side of killing intent. Wuxian looks tired, not quite sickly, and he's not dressed in the royal purples or soft whites that he had worn the first two times they met. He doesn't have his sword either, Tobirama realizes, and while that shouldn't be concerning, it is in a way he can't explain.

"Wuxian," Tobirama greets cautiously. Wuxian's smile is strained, forced.

"Tobi-er." The return is laced with cheer so false it's almost painful.

"...Are you-" Wuxian's eyes flash unnatural red and his mask falls, the other's features turning sharp and angry although Tobirama is sure it isn't really pointed at him. The darkness presses down at him, making him tense.

"Don't," Wuxian says firmly. When Tobirama nods, the mask snaps back into place, fragile and just as easy to see through as it was. "Words?" Wuxian sounds so hesitantly hopeful that Tobirama acquiesces easily. He won't push Wuxian until he's sure the other can take it. They pick up where they left off, methodically working through the basics of their languages. The shared written language, even if Tobirama's language has two more added alphabets, makes it easier than it otherwise would be. Still, by nightfall, they're both antsy. Tobirama needs to return to the Senju Compound and he's sure Wuxian has to return to his own people. His chakra is recovered enough that he's confident in his ability to return at least relatively safely. However, Tobirama hesitates, glancing out the cave entrance into the dark of the night. Wuxian is watching him carefully, almost fragile, in a way, when he turns back. The fragility has disappeared over the length of their conversation, to see it return is jarring.

"Stay the night?" He asks quietly, slowly, so his words come across clearly. Even though his friend hesitates in agreeing, Tobirama can see the relief etched into his bones. More time to rest and more chakra is far from a bad thing, he supposes. They fall asleep slowly that night, both on edge, but they sleep side by side, pressing together for warmth and the pretense of safety. The night is warm and his sleep better than it rightfully should be.

"Tobi-er," Wuxian says quietly, waking him up. Tobirama hums, cracking his eyes open. The fire had gone out at some point, a chill seeping back into the cave. Wuxian is crouched above him, eyes sharp in a way he recognizes intimately. Instantly, he's alert, tense and on edge. He rolls smoothly to his feet and just begins casting his chakra out to sense (why had he been so stupid? To let his guard fall so far in a time of war-) when the entrance to their cave is darkened by a trio of people. Three shinobi- and Uchiha at that. Damn. He shares a glance with Wuxian and, remember the sword from the other's last visit, makes a plan as he lunges to his feet. He unsheathes his sword and tosses it to Wuxian, also on his feet, drawing a pair of kunai for himself. They don't bother to stay and fight, instead just forcing their way out into the light of early dawn. Tobirama takes to the trees, only pausing when dark energy (so cloying and thick and he remembers this, or something close to it, when stumbling across a kitsune the size of a mountain) nearly makes his slip with its sudden appearance. He glances back to see Wuxian, wreathed in black energy and smoke, sword in hand and Uchiha standing warily across from him.

"Wuxian," he snaps, panic rising. Something is going on here that he _does not like_ , does not want to happen.

"Go," Wuxian says sharply. Tobirama wants to argue, to stay and help, but the darkness surrounding Wuxian surges, consuming the other for the barest moment, making the air heavy and thick in his lungs. The message is loud and clear- Tobirama will leave or Wuxian will force him to. Wuxian tosses a glance over his shoulder as the Uchiha try to recover, darkness still pressing down so heavily on them all. Wuxian's eyes are red and just as dark as the power he wields. A power that is hungry, eager to devour them.

"Zai jian, Tobirama," the man says with a finality that makes him nervous; nervous and scared and unable to argue. Tobirama leaves without looking back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Zai jian" - goodbye


	4. Chapter 4, Part 1

**4.**

The fourth time Wei Ying is summoned to Senju Tobirama's side, he gasps and coughs and chokes for air that he can't get into his lungs. He curls up as tightly as he can, hands scrabbling at his chest and throat in an attempt to soothe the burn or pressing into the floor, desperately trying to feel something, anything, beyond the pain and panic and regret (and flickering, poisonous anger). The fourth time Wei Ying is summoned, it is bare moments after taking his mistakes into his own hands to destroy, letting his resentful energy tear him and the Stygian Tiger Amulet apart. The fourth time, he is dead and Tobirama is not. Senju Tobirama hums above him, familiar and confused, and Wei Ying calms slightly, thinks _he's safe now, Senju Tobirama will listen to him and_ believe _him_ -

"It didn't work."

-and the panic returns, crashing into him and determined to break him (he's already broken, what more could he _give_ , what more can be taken from a dead man?) all before he even has time to let himself uncurl, his finger digging like claws into the wood beneath him. Lan Zhan doesn't believe his and Jiang Cheng hates him and Shijie is dead and Senju Tobirama can't see him and-

And-

He'd failed. He failed, he's a failure, why did he _even try?!_ Madam Yu was right; everything he touches breaks or goes to shit and now the YunmengJiangs are gone and so are the Wen Remnants and little A-Yuan. A-Yuan who looked up to him and believed him and _loved_ him. A-Yuan who was a child, they _killed a child_ , he let them he- he failed him, all of them, and now he's dead so he can't even give himself over to Jiang Cheng so he can pay his debts.

"What did I do wrong?" Senju Tobirama's murmured question staves off the panic, quiets the self-hate, and brings him back to the present enough for him to register the wood of the floor and the lines of blood-ink inches from his face. He hadn't even thought of the idea of blood-ink until Senju Tobirama had brought it to his attention. It certainly made directing the resentful energy easier. It listened to blood, to pain, more than it ever did pure ink.

"Nothing, Tobi-er," Wei Ying breathes. "Absolutely nothing." He garners no attention, not even the slightest or pauses, nothing to prove that this really exists and isn't just some fever dream his mind made up in its last moments. Senju Tobirama steps away from the array, swiping up a journal from a nearby desk, talking to himself as he begins to pace, working through ideas and questions. It's a process Wei Ying had employed, the few times he had been able to research something that he wanted to know more about, to perfect and show off or to claim as solely his own. His friend's speech is too fast or quiet or complicated, or all three, for Wei Ying to understand. He lets himself lay there instead, letting the soothing babble of words lull him into something that couldn't be considered sleep even for an insomniac like him. He wants- a lot of things, really, but death would be nice. Finally being able to rest, to put this goddamn mess of a life behind him. Then the people he loves might actually get a good life, without him around to screw it up. Being able to cry would be nice, at least, if not-existing is off the table. He lets out a shuddering ghost equivalent to a breath and pulls himself carefully into a sitting position. He's not sure what he expected, or why he expected anything at all, but when Senju Tobirama still doesn't notice him, he feels disappointed. Irritated.

(Unnatural anger curls low in his gut, simmering and beckoning like his resentful energy once had. Begging to be used, adored, fed.)

He crushes the uncharitable feelings deep down inside him because he knows Senju Tobirama doesn't deserve his annoyance and short temper. Besides, disappointment has never done anything more than drive families and friends apart, trust him. It's a wonder anyone stuck by him in the end, considering how disappointing he knows he was to them all. A demonic cultivator and a Wen sympathizer? What a perfectly good waste of a cultivator, right there. The door to the room swings open with a slam and both he and Senju Tobirama turn towards it. A strangely familiar man stands there, older and tanner than Senju Tobirama. He has darker hair as well, with those chocolate locks. An almost unheard of colour, back home (not his home, Wei Ying reminds himself fiercely, not anymore), even more so than Senju Tobirama's white- although white-haired people were rare enough on their own. White hair only showed up with albinism, something Wei Ying had gotten curious about, after his first meeting with his friend. Albinism has so many different effects on the human body. Senju Tobirama seems to have lucked out in that department; as far as Wei Ying can tell, the other has a fully functional golden core (or whatever passes for one in this strange land), full hearing, smarts enough to outwit any man. Just a light sensitivity and a tendency to burn which he likely 'fixes' with a layer of that weird, impure spiritual energy (hadn't Senju Tobirama referred to it as chakra, once?).

"Tobi~" The newcomer whines, drawing out the 'o' and 'i' sounds. Are they close, then? He swears he recognizes the man from _somewhere_. Senju Tobirama closes his journal with a loud snap. The man is unafraid, apparently unaware of the fact that the albino is on the verge of homicide. Wei Ying leans forward, wishing he had something to snack on while he watches this go down.

"Don't call me that," Senju Tobirama says, his almost as sharp as the sound his journal had made. Under it, deep under it, Wei Ying can make out the fondness. The other man ignores Senju Tobirama, chattering on about something Wei Ying has no hope of understanding, although he does manage to catch a few words here or there. It's not _nearly_ enough. Eventually, Senju Tobirama cuts the man off, gesturing at Wei Ying as he says something. Or rather, gesturing at the talisman Wei Ying is still sitting in the smackdab middle of. Actually, now that he thinks about it, why hadn't Senju Tobirama used the smaller, improved talisman that he had created? The one he used last time, that had fit so snugly into a scroll? Had Senju Tobirama already tried that and it was just too weak to summon Wei Ying? Spirits are probably more slippery than living humans, particularly ones that haven't been around very long... Wei Ying watches as Senju Tobirama begins to argue with the new arrival, quiet and insistent. He's pretty sure the albino could pass off as a Jiang Cheng, Lan Zhan love child-

Nope!

Nope, no, _absolutely_ not, that's a horrifying thought!

Senju Tobirama scuffs a break into the array with his foot and Wei Ying hisses a breath in, muscles bunched and coiled, eyes wide as he waits for the inevitable reaction. Except... nothing happens. And nothing continues to happen. Not a single thing; not a spark or a surge of energy or release of tension. He thinks that that might be worse. He shifts forward into a crouch as Senju Tobirama sweeps one last, furrowed look over the array. Wei Ying waits until his friend and his friend's friend have left the room before he edges from the array, overly cautious and hyperaware that bad (and hazardous) results are abundant with talismans. It can't be terribly different with these one-sidestep-from-normal talismans that Senju Tobirama's world dabbles in. Again, nothing happens when Wei Ying leaves the array, besides one or two harmless sparks of spiritual energy at the section where he stepped over.

There’s a tug in his chest, tight like a band pulled taught, and the longer he lingers the more insistent it gets. Uncertain of the rules of the afterlife and not particularly wanting to get his soul torn to shreds in the first few minutes of his new half-life (as much as it would probably be better for everyone involved), Wei Ying generously decides to follow it. Based on his haphazard luck, it has the possibility of being an absolutely horrid decision and the only way to find out is to just do it, he supposes. He travels cautiously through the unfamiliar halls, sticking close to the sides to avoid the living walking around. He doesn’t want to run into one on the off-chance he’ll actually hit them and give himself away _or_ on the likelier chance that he’d phase through them because that’s just plain weird. He can’t imagine what it’ll _feel_ like.

In the end, he's back by Senju Tobirama's side, peering over his friend's shoulder to take a look at the stuff he's got laid out in front of him. What Wei Ying can make out is... not terribly interesting, to be honest. Finances, it looks like, and supply routes. There are some other things that look sort of like war plans but he can't make out enough of them to be sure. He looks away from the papers, eyeing the brown-haired man that had called Senju Tobirama so familiarly. Now that he can investigate the man properly, his panic and other unsavory emotions squirreled away into a tiny little box, the man shares some features with Senju Tobirama. They're plenty different, of course, but there are enough similarities in the facial structure to make him think that they're related. Maybe siblings. If one took more after the mother and the other after the father, adding to it Senju Tobirama's albinism, there's more than enough evidence for that. Wei Ying hums curiously and flounces away to the corner of the room. He'll have to content himself with watching since it's not like he can do much else. Death, he thinks, is going to be quite boring.

...

Fucking _Hashirama_! That guy is Senju Hashirama, how did he _forget_ Senju Tobirama's _brother_ , honestly he knows his memory is bad but this is just _sad_!

* * *

Wei Ying shoots a glance at Senju Tobirama, checking that the man is still asleep. Seeing that he is, Wei Ying sighs and turns back to the book he's trying to use to entertain himself. It had worked for a bit- until he read the entire page and realized that he _can't flip the page_. He had tried to control the resentful energy around him to maybe solidify his hands or cause a gust of wind or _something_ but the resentful energy is being incredibly slippery. He thinks it's because he's dead but either way, he's definitely not going to be able to control it without even his dizi. Well, any instrument would work but he would prefer Chenqing; he already made her into a spiritual weapon. Resentful weapon? Whatever, the point remains the same.

"Hello?" Huh. Wei Ying hadn't heard the door open. He doesn't bother looking, knowing the greeting isn't for him. He glares at the book. If the page would just flip-

"What are you doing?" The newcomer asks. Wei Ying glances at Senju Tobirama to see what's so interesting but his friend is still sleeping. Weird. He shakes it off and turns back to his problem. Alright, he can do this. He created the first stable version of demonic cultivation, he can get resentful energy to turn a damn page in his book. He takes a deep false-breath in, closing his eyes to focus on the resentful energy around him. It's strong but not as pure as the resentful energy in his own world. It's mixed with the same stuff these people mix their spiritual energy with. He frowns, focusing more fully on the resentful energy. It may not live in any way people accept but Wei Ying knows its heartbeat, its hunger, its sentience. It wants, _craves_ , in the same way people do. It wants a home, somewhere to rest and someone who will take care of it, feed it. He just needs to _let it in_ -

"Stop!" The person from before snaps and Wei Ying is yanked backwards. It snaps his concentration and the gathering energy dissipates. Wei Ying snarls whirling on the person-

It's a kid. It's a kid, no more than eight, blood staining his skin.

It's another spirit.

"You're-"

"You were hurting him!" The boy interrupts, angry and protective in equal measures. Wei Ying blinks, glancing at Senju Tobirama. His friend is no longer sleeping, now pressed into the corner with a kunai held out in front of him, an instinctual fear making his eyes wide and his grip shake ever so slight. Shit. He's already released the resentful energy and it's clearly already having an effect. Senju Tobirama is calming extraordinarily fast, now more confused than fearful. Wei Ying turns back to the child spirit.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize, I'll- I'll try not to do it again," Wei Ying says quietly.

"You better," the boy hisses, storming over to Senju Tobirama's side to hover like a mother hen. Under the boy's baleful eyes, he lets himself out of the room, sucking in a sharp breath when he's out in the hall.

"Shit," he breaths. " _Shit_."


	5. Chapter 4, Part 2

**4.**

After running into the boy spirit (who now sticks close to Senju Tobirama's side and glares at him when he gets too close), Wei Ying gets a lot more observant. To be frank, there are spirits everywhere. Most are clearly family or friends of the living but there are also vengeful spirits. Ones that were killed and want to kill the Senju but don't have the innate control over resentful energy that the dead did in his former world. The good thing about this is that it means he can rope various spirits into conversations (read: arguments. Most of them are on the aggressive side of things) to learn more of this dumb language.

It’s so strange, how similar yet undeniably different this language is to his first. It makes some aspects difficult and he’ll often times end up mixing the two languages together but he thinks he’s starting to get the hang of it. He’s not sure he knows enough yet to explain himself to the child ghost but he’s getting there. He’ll get there.

He has had less time to research and experiment on the strange reaction people here have to resentful energy, considering he can only get so far away from Senju Tobirama and his overprotective little follower, but he thinks that he’ll be able to figure it out eventually. Maybe not in Senju Tobirama’s lifetime but there’s only so much he can do if he stays in this world where spirits are so much less powerful anyway. He doesn’t understand why spirits are so weak, either, since resentful energy, even if it’s impure, is teeming in this place, swirling around people and clinging to souls like some sort of disease. Honestly, with how resentful energy seems to affect people here, he’s not entirely sure it _isn’t_ a disease or a leech or some other equally bad analogy.

Whatever the case, it’s not as active, as sentient, as it was in his former world. He thinks that’s good, considering how abundant it is here.

(He wants to experiment, to get himself home, but if it comes at the cost of anyone in this universe- _especially_ Senju Tobirama -he’s not sure he’d ever forgive himself.)

(Oh, who is he kidding, he knows he wouldn’t. He’s carrying it with him the same way he carries the destruction of Lotus Pier, the loss of Jiang Cheng’s death, Jin Ling’s status as an orphan, the deaths of the Wen Remnants.)

* * *

”You’re weird,” a spirit says to him. Wei Ying blinks, eyeing the kid— and that doesn’t even surprise him anymore. There are so many child spirits here and it breaks his heart. The boy honestly looks rather like Senju Hashirama if Senju Hashirama was about ten and unimpressed with what the world has to offer.

”So are you,” Wei Ying says back stubbornly, not to be outdone.

”No- well, maybe- not as weird as you.” The kid sounds rather frustrated. “You act weird and talk weird and somehow managed to piss off ‘Tama— I didn’t even know that was possible —and you never leave Tobirama alone.” Wei Ying tilts his head.

”You know Senju Tobirama and his...” Wei Ying hesitates, glancing over to his albino friend and the even younger child glaring holes into his head, “his bodyguard?” The boy laughs.

”’Course I do. Tobirama’s my older brother and Itama’s my younger one.” The kid grins. “I’m Kawarama, the best, of course.” Wei Ying bites back an insensitive comment about his status of life and how that makes Senju Tobirama and Senju Hashirama better, reminding himself that Senju Kawarama is a child and doesn’t deserve his pent up frustration.

”Okay,” Wei Ying says slowly, “so why aren’t you ever by Senju Tobirama? And why do you want to talk to me?” Senju Kawarama waves him off.

”A person Itami is angry at is clearly a person I have to be friends with. Besides, I’m almost always with Hashi- I like him best,” Senju Kawarama says in the manner of a child without fear.

”Err... that’s sort of rude, isn’t it? Picking favourites?” Wei Ying may have never entirely understood Jiang Cheng and Jiang Yanli but he had loved them equally— even if he _had_ pretended otherwise to get Jiang Cheng to actually accept his love without being all weird about it.

”Eh, it doesn’t matter. Itama’s favourite is Tobirama and Tobirama’s favourite is Itama and my favourite is Hashirama and Hashirama supposedly loves us all equally but none of us actually believe that,” Senju Kawarama say, matter-of-fact.

"That sounds..." He doesn't even know. Awful? Impossible? He couldn't ever imagine picking one of his siblings (they're not his siblings anymore- he threw their bond in their faces like it didn't matter and then _killed Shijie_ -) over the other. It's just... not possible.

"Hello, earth to- wait, hey, I don't even know your name!" Wei Ying laughs, focusing back in on the kid.

"I'm Wei Wuxian."

"You're the one Tobirama kept trying to summon!" Kawarama pauses, staring at him. "No wonder it didn't work if you're dead." Wei Ying glares playfully at him.

"Rude, bringing up my lack of life. Don't you have any manners?" The kid snickers.

"In this family? Hell no." Wei Ying has a bad feeling that _that_ sums up this world quite well.


	6. Chapter 4, Part 3

“Why do you talk so weird?” Senju Kawarama asks, curling in the air over Wei Ying’s shoulder. Wei Ying pushes him away, trying to see the scroll the kid is blocking. He thinks it’s something on finances and war plans but he can’t quite tell. He also thinks it might be in code.

”What do you mean?” He asks absently. This scroll is so, _so_ annoying. It’s like when you open a book expecting one story and getting a completely different one. Sort of uneasy and confused and angry all in one.

”Well, you say words weird and you always say people’s full name.” Wei Ying pauses, his attention finally pulled away from the scroll. He turns to actually look at the hovering kid (note to self- he needs to figure out how to do that).

”You don’t use people’s full names when referring to them?” He asks curiously. Kawarama shakes his head.

”Nope. Too long and annoying.”

”Oh. Well it’s a sign of respect where I come from. You always use people’s full names unless you’re close enough to them that they let you use their personal name,” he explains. Kawarama sticks out his tongue.

”That’s so stupid! When we want to show respect, we jus add an honorific onto their last name. Like, you’d be Wei-san and Hashirama would be Senju-sama because he’s the leader of the clan now. And there’s also -chan and -kun but those are for friends. I think.” Kawarama shrugs. “I never really paid attention and now I don’t have to use them so whatever.” Wei Ying tilts his head, humming interestedly.

”We have something like that, too. I can call Senju- err, Tobirama Tobi-er. Then there’s also a- like a-Yuan-“ Wei Ying snaps his mouth shut, swallowing thickly at the thought of the little boy who had idolized him. The little boy that’s _dead now_ because he _couldn’t save them_ , he can’t _do anything_ , he-

“That’s not good, you know,” Kawarama says softly, breaking through his fog of self-deprecating thoughts. He forces his breath not to shudder, yanks the mask he had used during the war, after the war, down around him.

”What’s not?” Wei Ying asks, smiling and ignoring the way the fake expression sends pains like needles through him. “Using familiar-“

”You’re blaming yourself for something,” Kawarama interrupts, making Wei Ying’s voice die in his throat. “Or someone, like how Tobirama blamed himself for me and Itama.” He shudders, his mask fracturing. He shakes his head, ignoring the desperate edge to the motion.

”Was it the name you used? ...Yuan?” Wei Ying takes a step back.

”Kawarama,” he warns quietly.

”Whatever happened, it wasn’t your fault. You can’t blame yourself-“

”Don’t,” Wei Ying snarls, the diluted resentful energy snapping and crackling around him where it’s counterpart would have flooded in like smoke. Kawarama stumbles away, eyes wide and fearful. “Don’t talk about things you don’t know about.” Wei Ying turns and stalks from the room, rage seething in the pit of his stomach. He knows he shouldn't have reacted like he did, shouldn't have gone straight to threatening. Kawarama's just a child after all, no matter how long the kid has been dead. He can't apologize though. Not now, when he's still seething and hurt.

He just wants to go home, just wants his mismatched family of Jiangs and Wens (and Lans) back. Hell, at this point, he'd even take Jin Zixuan.

Whatever his feeling, his leash is short and he reaches the edge of where he's allowed quickly. He tucks himself into the corner, sliding down to wrap his arms around his legs. The dead can't cry. He wants to. Oh, how desperately he wants to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These chapters are just getting shorter and shorter, aren't they? I'm sorry


End file.
